The Obama administration will deport fewer illegal immigrants this year than any other year of the Obama presidency, despite the crisis unfolding at America’s southern border, the Associated Press has reported. The AP said just 319 of the 59,000 illegal immigrants who were caught traveling with their families have been returned to Central America as of early September. Deportations are down nearly 20 percent when comparing the number deported between the start of the budget year and July 28, 2014, with the same time period during the previous year, according to Homeland Security Department figures obtained by the AP.
The dramatic drop in deportations comes amid reports that the federal government may have told officials in Yuma County, Ariz., it would no longer prosecute first-time border-crossers. While President Obama has announced that he would delay taking executive action to amnesty illegal immigrants, it appears as though some federal officials are not waiting until the president publicly sanctions such measures.